First Students Graduate From Rochester Satellite

NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

First Students Graduate from University of Minnesota's Rochester Nursing Satellite
Program responds to nursing shortage, need for more B.S.N.s

Minneapolis, MN (June 18, 2004)-The first students to enroll in the University of Minnesota School of Nursing's satellite program in Rochester will graduate at 2:00 p.m. today in ceremonies at the Ted Mann Concert Hall in Minneapolis.

An expansion of the Twin Cities' Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, the Rochester satellite was established in 2001 to respond to the nursing shortage. When it reaches capacity next year, it will have a total of 90 students in its sophomore, junior and senior classes. This year, 12 of the 102 graduating seniors will be from the Rochester program.

Students in the Rochester satellite come from southeastern Minnesota, the Twin Cities, and across the region. Their clinical experiences take place in a number of area facilities, including the hospitals of the Mayo Clinic.

Today's commencement speaker will be Dean Sandra R. Edwardson, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N., who this summer is stepping down as dean. After holding the post for 13 years, she is returning to her own projects, including a project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development to enhance nursing education and leadership in Central Asian countries.

Greater health care complexity demands more education

Because of the increasing complexity of technology and patient conditions, the American Nurses Association has recommended raising the proportion of B.S.N.-prepared nurses in the workforce. Each year, the University ranks either first or second in the state in the number of B.S.N.-prepared nurses it graduates.

The University of Minnesota School of Nursing is the world's oldest continuing university-based school of nursing. Approximately 450 undergraduate and 330 graduate students are enrolled in the School's B.S.N., M.S. and Ph.D. programs. It is the only school in Minnesota to award a nursing Ph.D., it has the largest graduate program at the University of Minnesota, and is the only school in the state to conduct nursing research.

As the state's nursing flagship, the school cultivates leadership, producing 55 percent of the faculty in Minnesota's public and private nursing schools, advanced practice nurses, and nurses who can assume leadership positions.

The School of Nursing is one of seven schools and colleges in the Academic Health Center, one of the most comprehensive education and research facilities for health professionals in the nation, fostering interdisciplinary study and research.

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